New Zealand wrens, the Acanthisittidae, are an odd bunch. They don't seem to fit into the traditional bird phylogenetic tree, and they certainly aren't particularly similar to the old world wrens Certhioidea. Studies have shown that they are more "basal" (as Dr Jamie Wood puts it), or a sister group to the Eupasseres (all the other… Continue reading The Wren Conundrum

Ashley Dene Farm is a research farm 15km east of Lincoln, owned by Lincoln University for over a hundred years. Last year (2016), a research and development station was created on the site and is used by Lincoln Hub partners for agricultural research. These include Landcare Research, AgResearch, DairyNZ, Lincoln University, and Plant & Food Research. Graeme Rogers… Continue reading Out and About With the Soils Technician

At the start of February I began a 5-6 month placement with Landcare Research. I have been extremely lucky to have been accepted onto the Science Teacher Leadership Program, administered by the Royal Society of New Zealand. Phase 1 of the scheme involves me being placed into a research organisation so that I can get… Continue reading Sciencing

There are a great number of truly fabulous blogs and websites out there. A wealth of information on scientific issues and, alarmingly, more than a few that insist on pushing pseudoscience to the ill-informed. My pet hate is "clickbait", the irritating habit that some website "authors" (and I use that term loosely) employ to entice people… Continue reading Pseudoscience and Clickbait